<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Ties of Blood by DaisyChainz</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26722198">Ties of Blood</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/DaisyChainz/pseuds/DaisyChainz'>DaisyChainz</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Meet the Knights of Ren [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Family, Found Family, Gen, KoR Histories, Post Star Wars: the Rise of Kylo Ren</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 08:26:44</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,467</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26722198</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/DaisyChainz/pseuds/DaisyChainz</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>When the Buzzard lands on the Finalizer, Kylo senses an unrest aboard. When he confronts Trudgen about it he learns many things about the Knights of Ren--and something very surprising about Ren and Trudgen's past.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Knights of Ren &amp; Kylo Ren</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Meet the Knights of Ren [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1860607</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>7</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Ties of Blood</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Kylo's holopad was sitting on the desk, covered in a thin layer of dust, when it pinged. He stirred from the floor, aware of the sound as he was only half immersed in his flimsy meditation. He didn't have to look at the pad, he never did, to know what the notification was. </p>
<p>He left his quarters without his robes, just his usual armor, heavy boots and mask, and strode to meet his Knights as the Buzzard docked aboard the Finalizer. He had been looking forward to seeing them; it had been months since Snoke had sent them on their mission. </p>
<p>But something was wrong, there was an unrest that he couldn't quite put his finger on. In the year and a half since Kylo had killed Ren and become Master of the Knights, Snoke had allowed him precious little time to actually commune with them. Their individual peculiarities were still not completely familiar to him. </p>
<p>Standing on the docking bay floor, Kylo couldn't help but grin under his mask as he watched his Knights disembark. Ap'lek and Ushar first; had Ushar actually grown more? He was going to be the size of a rancor if he ever filled out that lanky frame. And in spite of his age, Ap'lek moved as easily as the youngest Knight. </p>
<p>Cardo was next, his MSE droid moving ahead to circle Kylo's feet, then retreating back to its master. Kylo wondered what tech would have to be reprogrammed back to their original settings, after he was gone this time. </p>
<p>Vicrul strolled down as though he owned both the Buzzard and the Finalizer. Kylo wished that his damnably possessive co-commander was there to see that; the waves of indignity coming off Hux would keep him warm for weeks. And they all knew there wasn't a lock on the ship that would slow him down. Kylo claimed to have no knowledge of his antics, but in truth, he had a list of places for Vicrul to 'stumble upon' for him. He knew Hux had secrets. </p>
<p>Kuruk followed last as he had to finish his docking protocols. The Finalizer crew liked it best when Kuruk was piloting; he was the only one that bothered. </p>
<p>They knelt before their Master, in turn. Kylo greeted them, telling them he had missed them and was happy they were returned. The First Order crew attended their duties around them, giving them a wide berth and long, sideways glances.</p>
<p>Finally, Kylo peered up the ramp. "Where is Trudgen?"</p>
<p>Vicrul shrugged, his flippant tone muted by his mask. "He was into his collection last I saw. Probably didn't even realize we landed."</p>
<p>Reaching out with the force, Kylo once again found that feeling. Unmuted as it was by distance and other minds, he was able to get a clearer feel of it. </p>
<p>He turned to the other Knights. "Go to my quarters. Have food sent. We'll join you soon." He knew by the time he got there his silent, sterile space would be anything but that. The Knights tended to leave chaos wherever they went, and Kylo was looking forward to the change. </p>
<p>Kylo didn't have to use the force to locate Trudgen, he knew he would find him closed in his room with his boxes. He was expecting to find him sitting, surrounded by open boxes, items scattered across the floor. He often lost time, hours, nights, whole days to sorting and cataloging his precious finds. He called himself a collector, but Kylo recognized a hoarder when he saw one. </p>
<p>To his surprise, when Trudgen's door slid open under his hand, the small room was as tidy as always. Boxes were stacked neatly and secured to the walls. The floor was uncluttered, and Trudgen was seated upon the bed. A single box lay open before him, and his attention was focused on a small object in his hand. </p>
<p>"Trudgen." Kylo spoke softly from the doorway. He had removed his mask as soon as he was onboard. </p>
<p>After a moment Trudgen looked up, blinking as though he had just awakened. "Master. Kylo. Are we here already?"</p>
<p>Kylo smiled. "Yes. You arrived on the Finalizer a few minutes ago. The other Knights have gone for food."</p>
<p>Nodding, but not moving, Trudgen replied, "I'm not very hungry right now. Perhaps I'll eat. Later."</p>
<p>Through the force, Kylo could still feel something coming off Trudgen. He frowned. Guilt? Something else . . . "Trudgen. Are you, mourning someone?" That hardly made sense, but that was what was radiating from across the room. </p>
<p>Trudgen didn't answer right away, his attention still on the object in his hand. Finally, he held it out so Kylo could see. "Do you recognize this?"</p>
<p>Kylo approached and leaned over the object. It looked familiar in a way that tickled something in the back of his mind. </p>
<p>"That's, Ren's clasp. Isn't it?" The one that had held his tattered cape in place. </p>
<p>Trudgen nodded, running his thumb over it. "Yes."</p>
<p>Shifting, Kylo added, "wasn't he wearing it when I killed him?" There was no point in skirting it, he had and he wasn't sorry for it. </p>
<p>"Yes, I retrieved it off his body before I ran." He paused, turning it over in his hand. "The cape was the only piece of clothing he could stand touching his scars."</p>
<p>"Is this who you are mourning? Ren?"</p>
<p>Sighing, Trudgen said "I suppose that's what this is. I was just remembering, really."</p>
<p>Feeling off-footed suddenly, Kylo managed, "we never spoke of him, after."</p>
<p>Trudgen closed his fingers over the clasp, looked at Kylo. "No. There was no need to. You did what was necessary. We all knew it. The road his recklessness was leading us down went nowhere good. The Shadow brought you to us for a reason."</p>
<p>Kylo chewed his lip. "And yet you mourn him."</p>
<p>Smiling, Trudgen placed the clasp on the bed next to him. "Yes. I still knew him and loved him. Regardless of whatever else I felt about his actions."</p>
<p>Blinking, Kylo's thoughts followed where the force led him. "He was, your brother? Your actual brother?" </p>
<p>"Yes. My older brother, by three years."</p>
<p>"Oh. I have no siblings, I didn't recognize the feelings at first." He sat gingerly on the edge of Trudgen's bed. "Were you always a part of his Knights?"</p>
<p>"No. Not in this sense, anyway. Although, as children I was always his keeper."</p>
<p>"But you were younger?"</p>
<p>"Yes, our parents worked hard to keep us out of poverty and weren't around much. Of the two of us, I was the most level-headed and Ren the most likely to get into trouble."</p>
<p>"Ren wasn't his name." It wasn't a question. Ren had told him so, himself. </p>
<p>Trudgen shifted. "No, but he hadn't been that boy in many years."</p>
<p>Kylo didn't press and let Trudgen continue.</p>
<p>"I was always good at knowing when he was getting into something, and the best way to get him out of it. But he slipped out of my reach when he joined a rough group. He was 14, I was barely 11."</p>
<p>"A gang?" Asked Kylo.</p>
<p>"No. A cult. It was where he learned of the Shadow. He reappeared when I was 19, as Ren. He already had the Ren at that point. I don't know if it was part of their beliefs, or something he corrupted for his own use. I don't even know if he bled the crystal in it himself; for all I know he stole it from someone else."</p>
<p>Kylo leaned on his hand, looking more closely at the clasp. "It was his. I could feel him on it, although part of it had died with him before I destroyed it."</p>
<p>Trudgen nodded. "There's that at least."</p>
<p>"What about his scars?"</p>
<p>"He never would tell me. It could have been part of their initiation, or an accident. Who knows. He quickly disappeared again, for years. I thought perhaps he was dead when he suddenly showed back up, about six months after our parents died. He had already created the Knights and told me I should join. He was the only family I had left, and there was really nothing for me on our home planet. So I did."</p>
<p>"Did the Force tell you to go?" Kylo looked him in the eye, Trudgen looked back. </p>
<p>"I didn't know it at the time, but I suppose it did. I think he knew, that's why he wanted me to join. It certainly wasn't sentiment. We had never been that close, and he always found my help meddlesome."</p>
<p>Kylob looked thoughtful for a moment. He didn't know when he would have another chance like this. "Who was with him then?"</p>
<p>"He already had Ap'lek. He might have been part of the cult, though neither one of them would ever tell me. They already had Ushar--picked him up in Bartyn's Landing in the middle of a killing spree. He was only 14 or 15 at the time. By the time I joined, Ap'lek had already adopted him, and Ren molded him into his weapon. He used Ushar's faith and need for structure to manipulate him with the Ren." Trudgen shook his head. "He's still very devoted to the Shadow, as he should be. But Ren was not a good influence on him."</p>
<p>"I let him, experiment." Kylo said, sounding a little odd.</p>
<p>Trudgen nodded. "He needs that. He needs to learn what he's capable of. And what others are capable--or not capable--of taking from him." Then he added, "there is true innocence within Ushar. Somehow, he manages to keep it uncorrupted by the piece of his soul that is the Shadow." They sat quietly for a moment, each seeing in their minds things that Ushar had done. They were both, in turn, horrified and awed.</p>
<p>Finally Kylo asked, "and the others?"</p>
<p>"We found Vicrul and Kuruk within six months of each other. We needed a Master Thief, and Ren caught Vicrul trying to rob us." They shared a brief smirk. "Then a sniper. That he could fly was a bonus. Did you know Kuruk was trained by the First Order?"</p>
<p>Kylo looked surprised. "I knew he had military training, but . . . He was a storm trooper?"</p>
<p>"A decorated one. Ren had to convince Snoke to order General Hux to let us have him."</p>
<p>That did draw a bark of laughter out of Kylo. "Wish I could have seen that."</p>
<p>Smiling indulgently, Trudgen continued. "Cardo we met in a bar. When Ren found out he was a weapons expert he threw the offer out, not expecting anything to come of it. Then, the next day Cardo showed up with his MSE, a bag and the body of a man he claimed thought was his best friend. Then, he fixed and upgraded all the tech on the ship and closed himself in his room for a week."</p>
<p>Kylo nodded with a quirk of his mouth. "So nothing has changed."</p>
<p>"No. None of that." His eyes drilled down on Kylo. "But you certainly shook things up."</p>
<p>Kylo returned his stare. He had killed Ren, and they both knew he would do it again, even knowing what he then knew. It had to happen, and the force had guided his hand. Kylo was not going to apologize and Trudgen neither expected, nor wished him to. </p>
<p>Kylo knew however, that didn't necessarily mean Trudgen would forgive him for killing his blood. </p>
<p>He hoped he didn't have to kill Trudgen, too. He hadn't minded killing Ren. Trudgen would be a different story. Kylo stood. Trudgen looked up at him, his hand laying next to the clasp. </p>
<p>"You said that I would lead all of you somewhere better, after I killed Ren. Do you still believe that?"</p>
<p>Trudgen looked at Kylo for a moment, then looked back down at the clasp. Kylo felt his muscles tense as he watched him take the clasp gently, placing it back into its wraps and the box. He closed the lid with a quiet click, then rose to join Kylo standing next to the bed. </p>
<p>They eyed each other for a long moment before Trudgen spoke.</p>
<p>"Ren will always be my brother. We were children together, he is my blood. I will always be thankful he brought me here, not because of the chaos or the killing, or even the chance to learn my powers in the Shadow. The Knights may not be blood, but they are my family. You, Kylo Ren, and all the Knights. You are my family. It was Ren that gave me that; it was the only good thing he ever gave me. You did what needed to be done; I know it, the Knights know it, even Ren realized it at the last. I am loyal to you. All of you."</p>
<p>Kylo didn't need to reach out with the force, Trudgen's sincerity bled through directly to him. He nodded. </p>
<p>After an awkward moment, Kylo smiled. "Well then, we had better go and join the others. While there is still food and my quarters are still standing."</p>
<p>Trudgen wasn't fooled. He knew Kylo missed the noise and clutter when they were gone. He turned to lead the way, Kylo followed, slipping his mask back on; the servo-motors whirring in the quiet air. </p>
<p>At the top of the ramp Trudgen stopped to put on his boots, his coat and belt. He tucked his capped mask under his arm and faced Kylo again. "Do you think the General will give me a Dejarik rematch?"</p>
<p>A grating sound emerged from Kylo's vocoder. It was a chuckle. "Absolutely. He thinks himself a great strategist; he takes being beaten as a personal insult."</p>
<p>Trudgen cocked his head, then put on his mask. He spoke through the slots, "he doesn't know about my abilities." It wasn't really a question. </p>
<p>"No," Kylo sounded delighted. "Although I'm tempted to tell him. He has a particular disregard for the force. To know, deep down, that he was defeated by it would absolutely gut him." He followed Trudgen down the ramp, still chuckling. One of the technicians nearby looked up in alarm at the sound. </p>
<p>"You seem terribly invested in the feelings of your co-commander." Trudgen noted. </p>
<p>A scoffing sound reached him. "Haven't you noticed how insufferable he is?"</p>
<p>Trudgen smiled in his mask. "He's perfectly amiable to me. Perhaps he has the same reasons for pushing your buttons, as you have for pressing his."</p>
<p>"What? Of course not. I was perfectly willing to ally with him in our duties. He is the one being hostile because he sees me as a threat to his power. If he was truly intelligent, he would take advantage, not alienate me."</p>
<p>"As you say, Master." Trudgen smiled and found that he was looking forward to food, shared with his family, after all.</p>
  </div></div>
</body>
</html>